Toyota’s upcoming GR GT has been spotted doing something remarkably ordinary for a car that is anything but ordinary: driving around Long Beach, California, in traffic.
The prototype is finished in matte black with a glossy black roof, although there’s not much point in hiding it now. Toyota has already shown us what the GR GT looks like, so the camouflage is rather like putting a moustache on a man who has just appeared on the front page of every newspaper.
More interesting are the three red-and-white stripes across the rear. One sits between the taillights, while two more flank the number-plate area. They appear to be test-car identification markings rather than some particularly adventurous piece of Toyota styling.
And underneath that rather sinister bodywork is where things get properly interesting.
The GR GT uses a 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8, paired with a single electric motor in a hybrid system. Toyota’s current development target is at least 641bhp and 850Nm, sent to the rear wheels through a new eight-speed automatic gearbox.
It’s also been engineered rather more like a race car than your average Toyota. There’s an all-aluminium body frame, carbon-fibre components, a rear-mounted transaxle and dry-sump lubrication for the V8. Toyota is targeting a kerb weight of 1,750kg or less, with a 45:55 front-to-rear weight distribution.
Then there are the details that tell you this isn’t merely a fast GT. Double-wishbone suspension sits at both ends, carbon-ceramic brakes are fitted, and the rear tyres measure a frankly ridiculous 325/30 ZR20. Toyota is targeting a top speed of at least 320km/h (199mph).
Toyota describes the GR GT as a “road-legal race car”, and the engineering certainly backs up the claim. Development of both the road-going GR GT and its GT3 racing sibling is continuing, with Toyota targeting a launch around 2027.
So, yes, this was technically just a Toyota being driven around California. But when that Toyota has a twin-turbo V8, 641bhp, carbon-ceramic brakes and enough rear tyre to invade a small country, “just being driven around” becomes rather more interesting.
